Miaowing is actually a learned behaviour, so compared to their wild counterparts
who barely miaow, pet cats miaow quite a lot and it's all coming down to
the fact that they enlist a positive response from their owners when they
miaow. So, miaows can mean all sorts of different
things and it very much depends on the context between the owner and their
specific cat. They can build up quite a repertoire over time, so somebody who's
had a cat all their life and the cat's now quite elderly, generally have quite an
extended repertoire of different miaow sounds meaning different things, from
opening the door, having a bit of fuss, being fed, that sort of thing. So say for
example a cat's got a particular miaow and the owner knows this means 'let's
open the door', that means I'll open the door and the cat goes outside. Then this is
reinforcing that behaviour on a regular basis. Now, if that cat were to be rehomed
to a different owner and it does a particular miaow, that new owner won't
necessarily know that that particular miaow means to be let outside. They might just
assume that it means 'I want some food' and feed the cat. Now, the cat might be
thinking 'Well, that's not quite what I was going for' so
they might try something else, so they might try pawing at the door
to which the owner might think the cat wants to be let outside. So they'll open the door,
the cat goes outside and this then reinforces the behaviour, so rather than
coming to the door next time and miaowing, that cat's much more likely to
paw at the door. So the owner plays quite a significant role in the communication
between themselves and their cat. Some breeds are more vocal than other cats, so
say for example, Siamese cats and some of the Oriental breeds as well. This is
worth taking into account because you need to understand what their normal
baseline is and what's abnormal for them. So if you feel that your cat has changed
in how vocal they are – whether it's more or less – we'd always recommend
that you take your cat to the vet's to rule out any medical problems, before then seeking
a referral to a qualified behaviourist such as the Association of Pet Behaviour Counsellors.